A blog by Isagani R. Cruz. Dedicated to Old King Cole, who first suggested a blog devoted to literary works written or read in languages other than the mother tongue/s of the author/s. For info about blogger, go to http://www.isaganicruz.net.

The Tagalog lines, unlike in European Macaronic verse, are simply translations of the Spanish lines. This is an example of what is known as ladino poetry, an early (in the Philippines) instance of code-switching or bilingual poetry. Ladino here is related but not identical to its present definition (i.e., Spanish-based creole language).

I am sure there are many countries where a similar literary phenomenon occurred. If you can share information about the history of bilingual literature in your country, that would increase awareness of the need for a literary critic to have more than one language.

About Me

Former Philippine Undersecretary of
Education ISAGANI R. CRUZ (Ph.D., University of Maryland) is the president of The Manila Times College
and a Governor of the National Book Development Board. He belongs to the Hall of Fame of the
Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards in Literature and is one of the 2010
Outstanding Filipinos (TOFIL). He writes
for Philippine Star, Pilipino
Mirror, and China Daily.